Essay Of Truth
by Military Mechanic
Summary: She's just the new kid at school. The kid who writes, the girl who doesn't like the senshi, the one no one understands. Then Naru gets an essay, just a simple one, and she writes down the truth. For the first time in years. And people start to listen.


A/N: so, this is me celebrating the new series of Sailor Moon that they're working on. Naru has always been one of my favorites and this is just a small insight as to what could have happened to her. what she could be thinking and feeling and where she goes, after that one fateful day.

i would love to hear your thoughts, people!

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"Alright, class." Arakawa says cheerfully, clapping her hands together. She waits for the gathered students to stop chattering and look at her, then she motions to the chalkboard behind her. "We've got a new essay today!"

Most of the class groans. but Naru sits up a little straighter in her seat. Literature is her favorite class by far, and when they actually get to write is her favorite part.

_I'm sure you'll be a great authoress one day, Naru!_

Even though not many people read her work here, in Osaha. Not like they did back on Tokyo, at least. She was known for her stories there. Here? She's just the new girl with the strange obsession to always have a notebook nearby. Or worse yet, the one that doesn't like the Senshi.

"As you can see, I'll be assigning the topic for you." Arakawa continues, and several more of the students wilt.

Naru doesn't, though. She takes lessons like this as a personal challenge. Impress the teacher and stand out, that's always her goal. Shine just a little bit, for just a few moments, because she's chosen to do something that no one else there has.

_I can't believe you wrote about that! So gutsy!_

The topic, their teacher goes on to explain, is to take a popular notion and give an unpopular opinion about it. Unpopular, but a true one. She has a list of possible subjects written on the blackboard but, from the moment the words leave Arakawa's mouth, Naru has already chosen her subject.

Her hand's in the air before she realizes it.

"Yes, Osaku-san?" asks Arakawa, smiling slightly. The girl is new, but she's already made an impression.

"Is there a word limit, Arakawa-senpai?" asks Naru. "And can I choose a subject of my own?"

The blonde nods and Naru smiles, lowering her hand and settling back into her seat. Oddly enough, it is the last time anyone sees her smile that week. Every other time they see her, she has her head shoved into her notebook, determined frown on her face.

_You're always writing! You need to lighten up some!_

Three days pass. Then four, five, six, and it's time to hand in their essays. Naru does, just like every one else, and she offers the teacher an almost nervous smile.

"I'm sorry, Arakawa-senpai, if this isn't the type of work that you wanted." she says, voice soft. There's something in her eyes though, powerful and determined, shoving away the usual soft undertones of brown and replacing them with something almost hard looking. "I'm very proud of my work this week though."

Then, like the other students, she heads to her desk for the lesson. Sits through it - but doesn't listen, because her mind is elsewhere. Stuck in the past with the blonde girl that used to be her best friend, who always read what she wrote but never let her get too lost in the world of fantasy, who promised to always be by her side.

_I promise you, Naru, we'll always be best friends! Nothing will ever come between us!_

Mind stuck on the fact that, really, a promise is nothing more than a string of words. Just like the lies that she writes down for most of her stories.

_You can't tell anyone, Naru, ever. You shouldn't have found out, anyway._

Just like everything else people tell her.

_The other senshi...they think that it would be best if we just stop seeing each other. It will be easier that way, right?_

Just like always.

The end-of-class bell goes off three times before it rouses Naru from her thoughts. The teacher is staring at her, eyes serious in a way that says she knows that an entire lecture had been missed. Naru just bows to her on the way out of the class-room, muttering an apology under her breath.

She skips the rest of school, claiming that her stomach is bothering her. A lie, yes, but isn't that what everyone does now? Naru almost skips the next day too, but decides against it. When she enters the main hall the next day, she wishes that she had just stayed home.

Crowded around the school's bulletine board is a group of girls, all muttering in scandalized voices. Plastered to the center of it is a piece of paper, which has no name printed on it but Naru knows it all the same.

_The Lies Of A Senshi_, is it's title.

_Protecting but losing touch with reality_, is it's ending line.

Naru knows this at just a glance. Because it's her essay - and she suddenly realizes that, unlike so much else she writes, those words are the truth.


End file.
